She shoots, she scores: hanging out where the booze flows

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Last night I went to the Winnipeg Jets Whiteout party downtown. I am sort of a hockey fan but not really. I get excited when other people are excited and I like to take part in festivals and street parties around our city. I care if the Jets win, but not really. I spent $22 on a t-shirt to “blend in” with the crowd. It was the first time that I can recall that I have ever bought anything hockey related for clothes.

I was once a fan of the BC Lions many years ago. I went through a football stage, similar to when I went through a hip-hop and rap stage. I was in the mood to try something new. I wore a BC Lions shirt to a few games and apparently you are not supposed to wear anything else in Bomber-ville. Someone threw an apple core at me and yelled that the Lions sucked. What grown man throws an apple core at someone, and poorly misses? Their level of participating in sports is clearly only yelling at a TV and not actually throwing a football.

This street party is the second major event that I have attended that has a lot of focus around drinking, not including an Art and Wine Walk. The walk took me in and out of boutiques and restaurants with a lot of other things to do instead of sipping or shooting thimbles of wine.

At Country Fest last summer, after searching far and wide for something other than alcohol, water, or soda I found one place that sold “fancy” iced tea. I didn’t come across anywhere at the Whiteout party last night that sold non-alcoholic drinks other than pop and water. I get it, sports and music festival fans don’t spill out their wallets at a lemonade stand but I can still wish other options were available.

When I go to events where there is alcohol, I like to be prepared. I walked into the street party with a venti Peach Tranquility tea from Starbucks. The one downfall to going to events, especially where making money is a motivator for the organizers is outside food and beverages are typically not allowed. I have been asked to pour out bottles of water so that I would purchase a $7 bottle on the inside.

***While writing this post, I was informed that there was an alcohol-free zone for families. Perhaps my desire for sparkling fruity beverages could have been found in there. I had no idea there was an alcohol-free zone. But what if you don’t have kids with you while hanging out in an alcohol-free zone for families though? Do you just look like a weirdo?***

Go Jets Go!

When it comes to being around large groups of people where there is a focus on alcohol, watching people act like idiots is enough to curb any temptation that I may have in wanting to partake. Within 10 minutes of arriving, my friend had beer spilled on her and moments later, someone stomped on a semi-full can of beer and sprayed her. I’m glad it was her and not me and I’m sure deep down, she would take another one for the team.

I am a people watcher and with my wild imagination, I like to make up back stories about the people I see. I watched as a young guy stumbled out of a porta-potty with a beer in his hand. He didn’t accidentally trip on his way out, he full on wobbled and had an intense look of confusion on his face. Perhaps the porta-potty was a portal to and from another land and he transported between dimensions and had no idea where he was.

My friend and I left the party for a little while to browse camping and hiking gear at Mountain Equipment Co-Op before going back to the party for a little while longer. I began to brainstorm how I can acquire some of the nifty pieces of gear that I really like. If I pass down perfectly fine gear to my daughter who very much enjoys hiking as well, I will have no other option but to buy something for myself to replace it with. Not spending money on booze = money for camping and hiking gear 😀

Cheers to a really nice evening and proving to myself once again that I can have fun even when surrounded by alcohol.